He opened the scoring in the second half after receiving a pass from Jordi Alba inside the area and firing a left-footed shot into the corner. The second came after a blunder by the Alaves defense about 10 minutes later.

Messi later also hit the crossbar from just inside the area. He hit the woodwork three times in Barcelona’s opening win over Real Betis last week, but he was yet to score in the league this season.

Defending champion Real Madrid, which also won its opener, hosts Valencia on Sunday.

RED-HOT START

Two goals in the first five minutes put Atletico Madrid on track for a comfortable 5-1 win at Las Palmas. It was the first league win for Atletico, which opened with a 2-2 draw at promoted Girona.

It was the second consecutive loss for Las Palmas.

LOST LEAD

Ten-man Levante rallied from two goals down to earn a 2-2 home draw against Deportivo La Coruna.

Deportivo was ahead 2-0 after the first half hour, but Levante pulled closer before halftime and equalized following a controversial penalty kick call in the 83rd at Ciutat de Valencia Stadium.

Ivan “Ivi” Lopez converted the penalty to keep the hosts unbeaten.

Midfielder Jose Luis Morales was sent off with a second yellow card in the 76th.

MAIDEN WIN

Girona beat Malaga 1-0 for its first win in the Spanish league. Girona was on its way to victory in its opener against Atletico Madrid but relinquished a 2-0 lead despite playing with an extra man.